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“Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease that
can cause joint damage, while it is more common in females and smokers
as well.
As per WHO estimations, made in 2004, around 23.7 million people
worldwide are affected with rheumatoid arthritis.
The disease can also affect children, which is called Juvenile
Rheumatoid Arthritis (JRA),” this was stated by Dr. Shabana U Simjee ,
Assistant Professor of Dr. Panjwani Center for Molecular Medicine and
Drug Research (PCMD) – University of Karachi, while delivering a lecture
on “Understanding Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA): Clinical Presentation and
Treatment”, in the video conferencing hall of Latif Ebrahim Jamal (LEJ)
National Science Information Centre on Saturday.
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The lecture was jointly organised by Dr. Panjwani Center for Molecular
Medicine and Drug Research and Virtual Education Project Pakistan (VEPP)
as a part of series of popular lectures for public awareness on common
diseases of Pakistan. Health professionals, students, research scholars,
NGO representatives and general public attended the lecture.
The main objective of the lecture series is to stimulate public
awareness about disease state and to give them the concept of the
medical checkup as an effective platform for prevention and treatment.
Dr Simjee said that Rheumatoid Arthritis is a chronic disease that
causes pain, stiffness, swelling, and loss of function in the joints.
“It occurs when the immune system, the system that protects the body
from outside harm, mistakenly starts attacking healthy tissue. |
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There are various types of arthritis, including RA, osteoarthritis, JRA,
gout, tendonitis, bursitis, fibromyalgia and scleroderma,” she said,
adding that in juvenile rheumatoid arthritis symptoms may start as early
as 6 months old, while JRA usually occurs before age 16.
She maintained that the cause of JRA is not known. She said, “RA onsets
in people between the ages of 30 and 50 years old, though it can occur
at virtually any age. Rheumatoid arthritis is more common in females and
smokers as well. |